Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 44(6): November 2018 Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2018. 44(6):233–235 233 Civic Science in Urban Forestry: Introduction to a Second Special Issue Lara A. Roman, Lindsay K. Campbell, and Rebecca C. Jordan Abstract. This special issue is the second of two dedicated to civic science. As shared in the first special issue, “Civic science in urban forestry is a means of engaging the public in the study, management, and care of urban trees, and includes varied approaches with different disciplinary foundations” (Roman et al. 2018). We describe highlights from six articles (including original research and short communications) that assess program evaluation, data quality, and volunteer motivation. With these articles, we aim to continue our consideration of current best practices and future research needs for urban forestry community science. Key Words. Citizen Science; Civic Ecology; Co-management; Knowledge Co-production; Participatory Research; Urban Ecology; Urban Forestry; Data Quality. This is the second special issue that resulted from a symposium entitled, “Citizen Science & Urban Forestry: Research & Practice.” That event was hosted by the United States Department of Ag- riculture (USDA) Forest Service Philadelphia Field Station and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, and was held in May 2016. The first special issue was published in March 2018, with six articles covering civic science projects initi- ated by researchers, municipalities, and ama- teurs, and spanning topics including volunteer participation, motivations, and attitudes, as well data quality from citizen scientists (Almas and Conway 2018; Bancks et al. 2018; Crown et al. 2018; Hauer et al. 2018; Johnson et al. 2018; Silvera Seamens 2018). In our introduction to that previous issue (Roman et al. 2018), we re- viewed key terms and concepts related to civic sciences and discussed future research needs. In this introduction to the second special issue, we briefly review the second set of featured articles. PAPERS IN THIS SPECIAL ISSUE As with the first special issue on civic science in urban forestry, the papers in this special issue include both Original Research and Short Com- munication articles. We are using Short Com- munication articles as practitioner notes for urban forestry professionals and researchers to share evidence-based evaluations of their pro- gram, addressing topics such as best practices for citizen science, data quality, programmatic motivations for engaging volunteers, cost-effec- tiveness, and cross-program comparisons (such articles are designated with †). We summarize below the six articles featured in this special is- sue; the articles address topics spanning data quality, shifting citizen science program goals, and volunteer engagement strategies—includ- ing community based social marketing and the role of identity in greenspace participation. Two papers assessed data quality in volunteer tree inventories (Hallett and Hallett this issue; Hamilton et al. this issue †). Working with Boy Scout volunteers in the former, and with under- graduate students in the latter, these studies highlight the value of bringing in a volunteer workforce to assist with inventories. With issues related to species identification or gross levels of decline (e.g., as the result of emerald ash borer attack), volunteers were able to provide highly accurate data sets. At a finer grain, discrepan- ©2018 International Society of Arboriculture
November 2018
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